The Scottish justice sector needs more diversity and inclusion and the Justice Sector Equalities Conference which has been running for the past five years since June 2019 is a great platform where this is discussed. 

Held in the iconic Parliament Hall adjacent to the Supreme Courts, this year’s Justice Sector Equalities Conference was opened by the Lord President and Lord Justice General of Scotland Lord Carloway followed by the traditional ministerial keynote address. The conference provided key stakeholders in the Scottish justice sector including the Scottish Government, the Law Society of Scotland, the Judicial Institute for Scotland, Police Scotland, the Crown Office Prosecution and Fiscal Service, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, the Judicial Appointments Board, the Scottish Legal Aid Board, leading law firms among others, with a fantastic and formal opportunity to converge and explore the best possible initiatives to increase diversity and inclusion in a sector that remains largely conservative. Those who attended were presented with a fine opportunity to share and learn best practices with the leading institutions that make up the justice delivery system in Scotland. 

The keynote speech, high level panel discussion and thought-provoking live Question and Answer session were the main highlights of the conference. The draft framework of the roadmap to the diversification of the justice system was presented, followed by discussions about how it can be adopted as a soft policy to help the key stakeholders achieve more and showcase their best practices with maximum impact. The conference report will be produced and sent to the conference delegates and all other stakeholders.